Foreign Ministry's press releases

The budget for 2013 proposes a total of 1,298.4 million euros for the administrative branch of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Open knowledge and data will be the topic of the Open Knowledge Festival on 17-22 September. One of the topic streams of the event, jointly organised by Open Knowledge Foundation, the Finnish Institute in London and Aalto Media Factory, is openness and open data related to global development and financing.

Finland and Estonia are organising a seminar on 10-11 September with a focus on the status and rights of victims in pending ICC trials. The seminar marks the 10-year anniversary of the International Criminal Court, ICC. The ICC may exercise jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. The event will be opened by the Foreign Ministers of Finland and Estonia, Erkki Tuomioja and Urmas Paet.

Finland assumed the Presidency of the Leading Group on Innovative Financing for Development at the beginning of September. The Presidency strengthens Finland’s role as a creator and promoter of new models for development financing in accordance with the goals laid down in the Government Programme and the Development Policy Programme.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) started its World Conservation Congress on 6 September in Jeju Island, Republic of Korea. Minister Heidi Hautala will attend the congress from 8 to 9 September. The world’s largest conservation congress will bring together thousands of experts and influential people from all over the world.

Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja will visit Lebanon on 8-9 September. Tuomioja will meet with Foreign Minister of Lebanon Adnan Mansour and Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination welcomes the various legislative reforms and action plans aiming at the abolition of racial discrimination.

The Ahtisaari Day will be celebrated again on Thursday 8 November. This year, the main venue of the Ahtisaari Day will be Helsinki, and the programme will be divided into events intended for schools, the general public and experts. The programme will consist of, for example, awarding of pupil conciliators elected by schools in Helsinki, a public event organised by the University of Helsinki, and a high-level seminar of experts.

Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja will attend the informal Gymnich meeting of EU Foreign Ministers Meeting in Pafos, Cyprus, on 7–8 September.

14 new Heads of Mission will begin their work in Finnish embassies and consulates general around the wor